Shoe-sewing machine.



Y w e/ '1 A. EPPLERL I SHOE SEWING MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED AUG. 8, 1908.

Patented Aug. 25, 191 1 8 SHBETSSKEET 1.

I. l 5, mdxffi .Zizvmbr v A. EPPLER.

SHOE SEWING MACHINE.

APPLIGATIOH EILBD mm. a, raga.

Patnted Aug. 25, 1914.

a sums-sum z.

m YMZQM A. EPPLER.

SHOE SEWING MACHINE.

APPLICATION rum) AUGLB, 1908.

Patented Aug! 25, 19m

8 SHEETS-SHEET 3.

A. .EPRLER. .9110 SEWING MACHINE, APRLIOATIOKIIL' BD 11mm, 1908 Patented Aug. 25, 1914 8 SHEETS-SHEET 4,

A.EPPLER. SHOE SEWING MACHINE. APPLICATIOF'I'ILIID AUG. 8, 1908.

1408560. Patented Aug. 25, 1914.

:A;EPPLBR.

SHOE'SEWING MACHINE. nzuuulon rum) we. e, 1908.

Patented Aug. 25, 1914.

8 SHEETS-SHEET '7.

,l/IIIIIIII/ Masses I Q' W ML hw A. EPPLER.-

SHOE SEWING MACHINE. APPLICATION FILED AIIG.8, 1908.

' Patented Aug. 25, 1914.

Toall.who'rititrrimy concern. a t

- :Be it"known tha-t I, A new Errnnm a citizen of the United -States,-residing at 1308- ton, in'the county ofsufi'olk and- State of Massachusetts, have invented certain new and useful'jImprovcnients in Shoe-Sewing Machines; and I do hereby. declarethe following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the.inve'ntion,-. such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it apper tains to make and use the same The present invention relates to .inseam shoe sewing machines, and is intended pri marilyfas an imprm-enient on inseam shoe sewing machines of that'class which form a-chain-stitch and which are provided with a curved hook needle entering the shoe from theoutside, and with a stitch*se tting-'take-- up operating to pull the last-formed loop tightly, around the shank of the needle while. the needle is in the work. An example of -this class of machine is the well-known Goodyear welt and turn. shoe sewing machine," thecon'struction and mode of operation of which is disclosed withsubstantial accuracy in the patent to French and Meyer,

No. 412,704. As'will be obvious to-those skilled in-t'he art, however, certain features [tures of the present invention are not limited to use in any particular type of inseam slioe V the needle, which pull would be liable'to of the present invention are equally applicable to other types of inseam'shoe sewing machines, and it is ,to be understood that ex cept as defined in the claims the several feasewing machine. I

' It a is customary in chain-stitch inseam shce sewing machines to give the needle'a forward movement or dip during-the feed of the shoe to prevent an objectionable pull being exerted by thelo0p of needle thread on break the thread or the needle "and would interfere with the proper manipulation of the shoe by the operator, This forward movement or dip of the needle is necessarily constant throughout the entiresewing operation, and while it efi'ectiv'ely preventsan objectionable pull of the needle in sewing I along the sides of a shoe, it does not prevent a pullupon the needle when the shoe is swung passing around the toe.

An object of the resent invention is to provide means ,where yasuflicient tension;

maintained on the loop of'needle -thread-to} Cause the awl to clear the sole. By provid- 110 keep the loopin the barb of the needle, and

the seiiie the thread -or". break the nedl or, 1 w th the manipulation,ofthesho' its retractin g'lstrok to one a less strain onthe threat In c hainv-stitch inseam ishoe dunes in which the needle operatsjfroin ithe.

time 'el h ob ectionable Ipiil at' t t" sewing operatic *which'wou \Yith this View; r rm-air present nvention fcons ii iii, of means=- oriactu'atin he thread sufiicientgto g1. 10 p n mea s ioi' eldi needle during the'fed,

rr igeds to cmbodimentbfth t the means .-for actuati ranged vto positiiely'j throughthe whollofit acting roke to-tighten the prececlingdoo lhe'ii'ee dle 1 as then released ii-mas retracting' m'echa msln and issu'pporf l' ht spring pressure during the fee 0 I outside and the enters the chaliinellof the shoe, difficulty has] been experienced in ar- 30 rangingthe awl so that it would pierceftjhe work in a path; substantially concentric with that of the 'ncedleyand at the sometime strike at the 'bottom of the channel. v

- An object of the present invention is to 35 provide anawl in this class of machines which will pierce the work in apathof substantially the'same curvature as that of the needle,-and which will strikethdwork at' the bottom of the channel without'requiring any objectionable tipping movement of the ish'oe suilicient to br ng the seam in an improper position." V V 4 \rViththisobject in view a featureof the :present invention contemplates-the provi sion in a machine of the class referred to of ia curved awl mounted *to'move about' 'an 'axis eccentric to the axis of'the' needle in a, path of smallerradiusthan that-of the needle and substantially tangent to the path {of the needle at the point where the-needle pierces the, work. Awl mechanisms have heretofore been devised in which the awl is mounted to move ahout'an axis concentric "to thatof the-needle, but in actual practice it has been found that an awl, mounted conj centric with the. needle is liable to strike the sole back of the ehannel'sothat an objectionable tipping of the 1 shoe .-is required: to

r 40 H .spection off-thence which-+1; 1I.;M V V Figure l i's a; view infronteleva'tion of a welt 'sewing inechine "ernhodyi ng; the same in their preferred form; Fig.2" isa view'in' side elevation .of 'tlleYn'iachine looking-from the right; Fig. 3is'fa i'iew in"side elevation I of the machine l'ooking ffroni fthe left. i Fig.

' o cal plane'just attheright oftlie needle" as .ing an 'awl.mountdeecentrie.jto the needle and .morable in epithet smallerjradius the i awl clears the soleand l enga es the; work;

'at the bottom of. the ohannel while the .isihm in. 'PI t OF erm in connection! with {.a

of the inventionisnotliinitm except as'fde fined in the claims; to "use in any particular type f of ol ainj-stiteh';shoe sewing '"maehine. NV hen the awlflis used in eonneetionj with *a machinehaving a'; needle which} pierces "the '2. :shoe' from the outside. theaxis'of the iawl is preferably "located at -tl axis of; the'ine'edl Other feeture's gof consist inaii improiredieonst c't 'rangernentflofij thefloop .which thethree I seam shoe sewing'iim'ap and a gements h eve en is ev i g. 4

:tion .will be} clear 4: is asectionalelevation 'takejx'l mm a' vertiviewed '-in Fig.1; 'Fig. .5'is' a detail 'Iview .illustra ting in front elevation tlie feedfslide,

' the :parts supportedthereby, and: their actu- 1 atin'g mechanism. .Fig'. "(5 isa view in side elevation of the parts. illustrated ln 'F1g. 5.

seei.i en.- Fig. 8 is in .detailseetional riewiof the parts .iilustratediin Fig. '5, taken" on a v plane indicated byv the. line 8 -S of. said fnntageous when.used i chine of; the class ese devibes; t wi 1 f g. 9' is :1 detail flew. illustrating. the :lt'eed slide n iront elevat on illld -Sll.()\\'- in the guides and sijipporting bracket forv the a view'.

insiderelevation of-the'palrts' illustrated 'j (Fig. 9.. Fig'.-11'is a view' in frontelevation. Y ,j v o f the feedfsli'de and its supporting bracket and'guidesgj Fig. 12 is a view.. in lend'i eleva-- 'itlonof jthe 'pe'rts illustrated'in Fig.i 11'.- Fig;- "13 adetall 'seotional plan'view' illustrating particularly the relation ofthe-feedslide to 3 its'actuating '1ever. Fig. 14 is a; detail plan .view of {the slide which, forms Qa; ortion of 1 the mechanism for actuating t e looper. Fig.1 15" is "a-f'i'iewin side elevation of the slide illustrated in'Fig. 14. Figs. 16 andi17 are-detail Yiews illustrating the connections betweenthe needle segment and its actuat- --ing lever. Fig. .16 illustrat'in the position of the parts while the nee'dle is eing positively actuated; and" Fig.' -17 illustrating the posi tionpfofthe.parts'while the needlefis-yieldingly supported under light spring pressure;- to allo the needle'tobe pulled forward when the-shoe is swung. 1 Fig. 18 is a detail view on'an enlarged scale of the mechanism illustrated in Figs: 16 and 17, but looking in the v opposite. direetion. Fig. 19 is a, diagranr fmatic view illustrating the paths of motion tofi the needle and awl and theirrelation'toi hej work bperatedi upon. Fig. 20 isza dia- 1 mm'a t'id'view illustrating-the mannerin hioli 'tl1e": ;thread. pulls. upon the. needle. "'iihen' the'shoe is swung in sewing round'the 1' "fTllG: machine illustrated in the-drawings- -isi- "'provi (led fwith-a Curved hook needle,- a' needle guide, a looper, a thread arm", a. fta keup,"an auxiliary t-akeup, a. channel guidefa welt 'guide,-a back rest back rest a and xiveltgluide slides; and a tension device; v iallqliaving the samegenernl arrangement "kind inode' of operation, except as herein-' after deserihmh'as the corresponding parts ion of the Goodyear welt and turn machine dis- 'elo'sed'inrutent N0 41250.4. I r The needle-l is seeured in the usual man- 'ner to a needle segment 2 pivot-ally mounted in a,- stationary portion of the machine frame lever 4Q To enable the needle to'be positively actu'atcdduring its retiectingstroke, so as to exert a positive pull on the loop of needle thread suilieieut to shortcut-he pre-v ceding loop. and thereafter be yieldinglyv supported under light spring tension (luring the feed of the work, the link 3 is connected to the (:ain actuated lever 4 as follows. Ihe lever -l is provided at its forward end with (hiring the retracting stroke of the needle,

isheldin the upper end of its. slot by means .'o.f :1' latch which as shown consists of a block 6 .inounted to'jslide -in a guideway on the" lever 4 at right angles to the slot in which 1 V the block is mounted, "The latch block 3' is held ix'rjiositim on the lever l by means.

u passing thi 'oughja slot inlthe v a slot in which is'iuounted a block 5, 10 ,whiehthelink 3 isypivoted.'- Thisblock,

,block, and the block is pressed towardthe block obymeans of a coiled spring 8 inter 'pQSed bl7 W6 6I1ith6 blOCk 6 and an abutment 9-on;the lever,- -The block-6 is provided at 1-tS"fO'I "W fi1d end with a notch-orshoulder which engages the block 5. During the retracting stroke of the. needle the latch I :blOGkYGlS iii-engagement with the block 5,

and-to permit-the latch block to be moved isiprovided-with-lan abutment screw or pin 10, the construction being such that after the e needle'completes its retracting stroke and shortens theupreceding loop, the abutment '10? strikes-the block-6- 'and moves it out of engagement 'with. the block 5. When the block '5 -i s-released, it is supported on the lever 4 bymean's of a spring 11 surrounding v a'rod-12'adjustably secured in the lever, 4

and extending longitudinally "of the slot.

The upper end of the'rod 12 forms a stop to limitthe movement of the block 5 in its slot,' and thereby determines the amount of yielding movement permitted to the needle.

The tension of the spring 11 is such that. during the'fecding of the worka light yield- I ing strain is exerted upon the loop of the The needle guide is'mounted in substantially the same manner as 1n cerneedle thread sufficient-to hold the thread in the barb of-the needle, but not sufiicient to injure theneedle or thread, or interfere with-the propel-feeding or manipulation of the shoe.

J j The advantages secured by the construction above described, whereby the needle is iyieldingly supported during the feed of the. work, will be clearly understood from an inspection of F ig. 20, which indicates diagrammatically the manner in which the distance from the last needle hole'to the barb of the needle increases when the shoe is swung in passing around the toe.

and actuated tain prior chain stitch shoe sewing machines with the exception that the actuating mechanism is more simple and compact. The

( needle guide, indicated at 13, is secured to or formed integral with one end of a shaft wl1ichextendsaxially through the hollow pivot shaft of the needle segment. Tothe other end of the needle guide shaft is secured a segment V14 with which a segment 15 meshessecured to the forward end of a cam actuated lever 16. Theneedle guide is thus actuated positively and directly through a cam actuated lever and can be operated with certainty and at a high rate of speed. The

thread finger or arm, indicated'at 17, is also arranged-and actuated as inprior machines,

with the exception that its thread engaging end is arlanged to rise higher from the work and thereby avoid striking the channel flap.

This movement of the thread arm is per mitted the arrangement ofthe looper,as Wlll be hereinafter explained. The-thread UPOn one vend. of ,a shaft mounted n the stationary head of'th'e, ma-

chine, and to the other end of this shaft is The arm 18 is connected secured an arm 18. by a link 19 to the actuated -lever'20.-

barb of the needle, is indicated, at 21. This looper is providedwith a shank which is re-'- caily. The shank of the, looper is held in the arm by means of a clamping screw 23. The

arni 22 is pivoted midway its length to a block24 secured to the forward end of afcam actuated slide 25.- The slide 25 is arranged above the needle and in a plane parallel with the plane of the needle so that the reciprocating,movements of the slidejimpart forward and. rearward movements to the looper. The movements of the looper at right angles to the plane ofthe needle are produced bf," oscillating the arm 22, the movements of the forward end of a cam The looper, which lays trauma and the looper due to the reciprocation oft-he slide a and the oscillation of the arm acting to carry the thread around theneedle and lay it in iheloarb. The upper end of the arm 22 is provided with-a socket in whicha rod 2 6'.is

received. This rod is provided at its upper end with a socket or hearing which receives a rod 27 secured to an arm 28 projecting from arock shaft29 arrangedparallel with the slide 25. The rod 26 is free to slide in the socket in the upper end of the arm22, and the rod 27 is free to slide in the socket in the upper end of the rod 26 so that the arm 22 can be oscillated from the rock shaft 29 and atthe same time the slide 25 can be reciprocated. The shaft 29 is'provided with a downwardly projecting arm 30 at its rear end which is provided with a roll engaging a cam on the cam shaftof the machine.

ating the looper controlsthe looper posiv tivelyiin all its movements so that the looper acts with certainty to lay the thread in the barb of the needle regardless o the speed at which the machine is oper ted, The v mechanism is simple in construction and compactly arranged. In operation it has proved to be efiicient and durable This looping mechanism, as so far described, is applicable to inseam shoesewing machines of types other than that illustrated inthe drawings, and is believed to embody features of invention hereinafter set forth in the claims, which are not limited to use inany particular type of nseam; shoe Sew ng 'maI-x' chines. In the construction illustrated in the d'pawings, the slide 25 of the looper mechanism is the thread arm can not be raised a sufiicient angles tothe barbed portion. In chain stitch shoe sewing machines that employ a thread arm, the looper passes above the thread engaging portion of the arm before it encircles the needle so as to cause the thread to be engaged by the arm. The distance from the work to which the thread arm can be raised is, therefore, limited by the position of the looper, and when the looper is arranged to operate as has heretofore been customary,

distance to avoid contact with the channel flap upon certain classes of work. Furthermore with the thread arm and looper of prior machines, the looper necessarily wraps the thread about the needle at some distance below the barb so that the thread slides down the needle into the barb during the retracting stroke of the needle. By arranging the looper and thread arm as illustrated in the drawings, the thread arm can be raised higher than has heretofore been. the custom, and the thread can be laid more nearly direetly into the barb of the needle. Greater certainty of the looping operation is thus se' cured, and also there is less liability of l11-' jury to the thread. 7

The main takeup of the machine is of usual construction and consists of a thread truck 81 mounted upon the forward end of a cam actuated lever 32. The auxiliary takeup consists of a thread truck mounted upon the forward end of pivoted arm 3-; The arm 3% of the auxiliary takeup is pressed upon by a spring actuated plunger 35. This plunger is mounted in a. vertical guideway in the frame of the machine, and its upper end is acted upon by a coiled spring 36 seated. in a recess in the machine frame between the upper end of the plunger and an adjustable abutment screw 37. The auxiliary takeup is thus spring-pressed, its upward movements being resisted by the tension of the spring 36. The thread, indicated at 38, after passing over the tension wheel at the rear of the machine, passes over a guide truck, 3-9, then under the truck 83 of the auxiliary takeup, andjthen over the truck 31 of the main' takeup. The arrangement of these trucks is such that during the rising of the main takeup, the auxiliairy takeup is moved upward, and during the falling movements of the main takeup the auxiliary takeup is allowed to fall and y maintain a tension on the thread determined by the strength of the spring 36 and the relative positions of the three trucks. The main takeup falls during the thread pulling movement of the thread arm, during the looping movements of the looper, and during the retracting stroke of the needle. To prevent the auxiliary takeup from stealing thread from the thread arm during its loop delivery or forward stroke, and while the needle is making the first part of its retracting stroke, a stop 40 is provided to limit the falling movement of the auxiliary takeup, which stop is engaged by an adjustable abutment screw 41 mounted in the lever 34: of the auxiliary takeup. The stop 40 and abutment screw 41 are so arranged with relation to the falling movement of the main takeup and. the thread delivering stroke of the thread arm, that the falling movement of the auxiliary takeup is stopped before the thread arm begins its thread deliver-ing stroke. During the first portion of the falling movement of the main takeup, therefore, and while the needle is being looped, the auxiliary takeu exerts a tension on the thread, but this tension is removed at such time as to prevent any liability of the stealing of thread from the thread arm.

The main takeup of the machine illustrated in the drawings acts in the same manner as that of the machine of Patent No. 412,704,10 pull off thread from the supply during its upward stroke and to give up this thread to the needle during its falling stroke to such an extent that the needle will exert a pull on the preceding loop of the seam and shorten this loop. To secure a Variation of the pull exerted by the needle on the thread in shortening the preceding loop, the machine illustrated in the drawings is provided with an adjustable stop for limiting the rising movement of the auxiliary takenp. this stop being indicated at and rousisting of an adjustable screw threaded abutment screw mounted'in the frame of the machine.- It will be obvious from an inspection of the drawings, and particularly of Fig. at, that an adjustment of the stop in will vary the amount of thread extending from the looper around the main and auxiliary takeups to the truck 39 and consequently will vary the amount of thread given up by the takeup during its failing movement to the needle.

An adjustment of the stop will obviously vary the time in the operation of the machine at which the abutment ll, of the auxiliary takeup will .hit the stop 4.0 during the falling movement of the auxiliary takeup. The abutment L1 is, therefore, made adjustable so that the falling movement of the auxiliary takeup can be stopped at the desired time in the operation of the mat he under any adjustment of the stop 4-2. This adjustment f the abutment it]. of the auxiliary takeup also permits an' adjustment for variation in the operation of the stitch forming devices occasioned by'difi'erences=in the kind Joflstock operated upon. 7 The awlof the machine illustrated in the drawings is-indicated at 43,-and is secured I in' th'eusual manner tov an awl carrier 44 pivotally mounted-upon the .feed slide. The and iscurved i'n'the arc ofra circle, of which .the pivot of the aw li is the center, and duringf-the operationaot:the machine the awl is r oscillatedxabout thisacenter, which remains fixed withrrelationg to the center about which the needle oscillates. 'lhe' awl is arranged to enter the jchannel of a shoe and pass through the between, substance. To enable the awlto strike at the bottom of the chan-, :nel V and puncture ashole in the between substance-in the path bf; the needle, and fat the same: time gclear' the sole at the .hottom Yof-Lthe :channel, the awl has a 'radiusiof curvature-less than that of the needle," and the axisxabout which it osci-llates is arranged at the rear of and beneath 2 the axis'about which the needle osc-illates.-

Y,The advantages gained by constructing and mounting the awl ,in this manner will beclearly-unde'rstood from an inspection of Fig. :19, which illustrates diagrammatically :the manner in which the .awl engages the work,and the. relative, paths of movement .of theI-avvl'and needle. ,Referring to this figure, it-;will be seen that the path of move ,iment I of, the awl.- is "substantially tangent 3 to th at of theneedle at,the pointwhere the rawl-and needle. passthrough the work, so that the .holejformed. by'the awl in the be- ;twee'ii-i substance will .be in line with the needles -It. will also be seen that the awl .risesfrom the channel inside of the path iee i snti ea ith the, dl iand thus n vjstrilge atj thebottdmf .the channel with- QlIlL 'COIItQQtjngf. \\{ltlx, thfl sole back ofthe e1 area 2I r-ere et nsi iiw r an insole p- ,per,and. welt suchas are indicatedin Fig. 19,

r an. awliin oiinted, concentrically with jthe needle Y(;)U,l[l,1dl 1nt 0: the sole at the rear of, thechannel,andinprder to cause the awl I to, strike, at the'. bottom ,;of the chanlf nel. without.,engaging thelsole back of the v cha nnel, would fbefnecess'ary to tip the I 1;.sh0e'., I however, the shoe would a "t the t ofthe channel guide ldbe-Irais'e'd ,so that cul bep e df t ci qwil. i

.., which it would; travel ifit were mounted the welt and the f I lie T drawingsfan ontlieffeedslideJ V lever" and 5 feed slide is iisnal construction fandl'permitsan' adjustment of'the length "of zjuste d "soastdbrmg the -awl in'ali-nement sewing machines, since the between substance can be"completely perforated with a hole concentric with the needle, which cannot be. done successfully with other forms of aw], and furthermore the use of a pivotally mounted-curved awl permits the use of an extremely simple and compact arral'lgement of the parts and actuating mechanism. Bymounting the awl eccentric to the cent of movement of the needle, and moving it on a smaller radius, the use of'a curved awl is made practicable, andthe disadvantages of prior constructions, in which a curved awl is used, are eliminated. It is often necessary or desirable in machines of the class to which the present invention relates to adjustthe awl to bring its point into the proper positionwith relation to the needle, which position varies with different needles and different awls. A simple and convenient means for adjusting' the awl for this purpose is illustrated in the drawings, and consists of an eccentric 45 formed on the stud 46 which forms the pivot of the awl. This eccentric forms the journal for the awl carrier, and by rotating the stud the awl carrier is raised or lowered to bring the point of'the awl into the desired position with relation to the point of the needle. j I The channel guide is of usual construc tion, and is indicated at 47. YThe'channel guide is'secured to afblock 48, and this block is mounted upon the torward end of the channel guide lever 49 soas to be adjust able vertically thereon. The block 48 is adjusted by means of an adjusting screw 50, and is held in adjusted position by av locking bolt 51 passing through a slot in the block. The channel guide lever 49 is pivotally mounted upon the feed slide, and is actuated by. mechanism hereinafter described. V

The feed slide of the machine is indicated at .52, and is provided'with a cylindrical bore 53, and with arr open-sided slot 54 which engage respectively guiding studs 55 and 56 secured to abracket 57 forming a part of the frame of the machine. This feed slide is provided with bores 58 and 59 for the pivot, studs of the awl carrier and channel guide lever, and with a bore 60 for a rocking stud formin a part of the awl actuating mechanism. T e feed slide is actuated rom a cam on the cam shaft of the machine through a lever '01 pivotally-mounted at its ends with aislotin which isadjustably' secured blockprovidedf with a pin 62 having mounted ,thereon a block 63 engaging slot This" connection of the forward endand provided intermediate its i with the needle at the end of the feeding movement, or into any desired position with relation to the needle, the lever 61 is made separate from its hub and is adjustably. sec'ured thereto, the adjustment being effected by an adjusting screw 65 screwed into the side of the lever and having its flanged head in engagement with a slot on the hub, and the lever being secured in this position by a locking bolt 66 passing through a slot in the lever. The hub of the lever'61 is made in the shape yoke which extends above and below a bracket67 secured to the feed slide supporting bracket 57. The hub of the lever 61 is pivoted to the bracket 67 by means of pivot pins extending upwardly and downwardly through the yoke into the bracket and secured in the bracket.

The mechanism for actuating the awl comprises a link '68 connecting the awl carrier with the lower end of a lever 69 which is mounted on the feed slide so as to oscillate and slide longitudinally. The lever 69 is provided at its upper end with a socket which receives a rod 70 projecting downwardly from the end of a rocking stud 71 mounted in the bore 60 of the feed slide. The rod 70 forms a guide upon which the lever 69 can slide longitudinally, and the rocking pin '71 forms a pivot about which the lever oscillates. To oscillate the lever 69 soas to actuate the awl and at the same time permit the lever to move with the feed slide, the lever is provided with a bore which receives a pin 72 projecting laterally from.

the lower end of a cam actuated bell crank lever 73. V

The mechanism for actuating the awl above described is simple and compact in construction as will be apparent from inspection of the drawings. The parts are arranged to move easily and freely, but at the same time are strong enough to prevent breakingor derangement when the machine is operated at high speed.

For moving the channel guide toward and from the work, an easy running, simple and durable construction is provided consisting of a toothed segment or arm 74 meshing with a corresponding tooth on the upper.

end of the channel guide lever 49, a shaft 75 to which the segment 7 1- is secured journaled in the bracket 67 and a cam actuated arm 7 6 secured to the shaft 7 5.

The back rest of the machine illustrated in the drawingsis indicated at 7 7, and the back rest slide at 7 8, these parts being constructed and arranged as in 1 rior'niachines.

An improved mechanism for yieldingly supporting the back rest slide is, however, provided, which mechanism is much lighter and quicker acting than the construction commonly used, which comprises a rack andpinion and a clock spring. Another advantage of this improved mechanism isthat it permits the use of a spring which can be easily adjusted, and a spring of such length that the movement of the back rest does not appreciably change the tension of the spring. This mechanism for yieldingly supporting the back rest comprises a horizontal arm 79, the free end of which enters a slot in theback rest and engages a roller mounted therein, and the other end of which is pivotally mounted upon a vertical pivot 81. A long coiled spring 82 surrounds the pivot 81, and is connected at its lower end to the arm 79, and at its upper end to a plate or disk 82 secured to the upper end of the pivot, so as to be capable of adjust ment to vary the tension of the spring. The disk 82' is secured in adjusted position by a clamping screw passing through the disk and screwing into the pivot. The "back rest is intermittently locked against backward movement by mechanism hereina tter described.

It is desirable in welt shoe sewing machines that the welt guide move toward and from the shoe in a path substantially concentric with that of the needle, in order that the groovein the welt may be brought into the path of the needle, regardless of the thickness of the material being operated upon. In the construction illustrated in the drawings, this result is secured by mounting the welt guide which is indicated at 84,

upon a welt guide carrying arm 85, and

pivoting this arm in front of and above the needle, substantially diametrically opposite the point at which the welt guide engages the work. By so mounting the welt guide,

it moves toward and from the work in a path of greater radius than that of the needle, so that it engages the lasting tacks laterally and bends them over, instead of resting upon the heads of the tacks. When in close proximity to the shoe, however, the welt guide is moving in'substantially the same path as the needle, so that the groove in the welt is not displaced to any appreciable extent by variation in the thickness of the material operated upon. The welt guide is moved toward and frointhe shoe at the proper times during the operation of the machine by means of a link 86, a welt guide slide 87 which is connected with the welt guide carrying arm by the link 86, a spring which acts to force the welt guide slide forward, and a cam actuated clutch mechanism which retr'arts the slide. The spring for forcing the welt guide slide forward is indicated at 88. This spring is coiled around a stud 89 provided with an adjustable cap disk 90 to which one end of the spring is secured. The other end of the spring extends upwardly and bears against a pin 91 projecting from tho welt guide slide. The cam actuated llutcl: mechanism for retracting the slide comprises a clutch negate box 92 Surrounding the slide,and provided with inclines between which and the edges of the slide, clutch rolls 93 aie'located. Qoiledsprings 94 seated in recesses in the clutch box act upon the rolls'and tend to hold them in clutching position against the inclines and the adjacent sides of the slide.

- The inclines on'the clutch box are so arerably-beforethe welt guide clutch rolls. and the slide from the clntch rolls 93 ranged that during the" rearward movement of the clutch box the slide is gripped by he slide is retracted. actuating the clutch box a cam actuated lever 95 is provided, the lower end of which is connected with the clut'ch'box by a link 96. To positively release the-welt guide during the forbox, and prefcontacts with ward movement ot the clutch the shoe, stationary pins which enter holes. in the reaches the limit of its forward movement,

I and positively force the clutch roils 93 backgroo es of difierentstyles wardly against the tension of the springs'94.

It is customary in welt shoe sewing machines to provide means for, adjusting the welt guide onits carrier toward and from the. path of the needle, so. as to bring the of welt into proper position- To secure this result, the welt guide of the machine illustrated in the drawings is secured to its carryin arm by means of a pivot pin 98 passing through a.

. slot, in the arm, and by a stud 99 passing throughthearm' and providedwith an eccentric portion engaging the welt guide.

' To lock the back rest'slide 78 and the welt guide slide 87 in their forward positions at the proper times during the operation. ofthe machine, themachine illustrated in the drawings isprovided with an improved mechanism .which is strong and du rable, andvwhich acts with'certainty to lock theslides precisely inthe-positions to'which rolls which are are supported :by.,;inclines; :on a

on the movable member.

, lock the slides securely in position vwithout liabilityoftany lost motion or any derangement or breakage ofitheiparts. The clutch rolls areindicated*at' 103: and 104,; and are arranged to engagerespectively the lower jantllupp'er sides :oftheweltvguidc and back rest slides. V

.same vert'ic'al planea-ndare fitted loosely in The rolls are arranged in the vertical slots in the frame of the machine.

the other roll.

,used for turned shoes, a suitableback 97. are provided clutch box as it arranged to engage suitable The supporting member for the rolls is in the form of. a wedge indicated at 105, one;

incline surface of the wedge engaging one roll and the other incline surface engaging The wedge 105 is pivotally connected at its rear end to the vertical arm of a bell crank lever 106, the horizontal arm of which is provided witha roll engaging a cam on the cam shaft. The bell crank lever is actuated by the cam to Withdraw the wedge to unlock the slides and thewed'ge'i's moved in a direction tol'ock the slide. by means of a coiled spring 107 connected at one end to the frame ofthe machine, and at the other end to the, bell crank lever 106..

The machine illustrated in the drawings, while adapted for welted work, can also e of usual construction being substitute for the welt guid'e, as will be readilyunden stood by those skilled in the art. In' such case, theslide 87 will bea back gage; slide age instead of a welt guide slide, and in :fact the slide of welt sewing machines corresponding to the" slide 87 of the machine illustrated the drawings isoften termed a backgage slide. Accordingly, in certain of theiclaims the term back gage slide is used redesignate the slide 87. f The tension devices of the machine illustrated in the drawings aregof well known construction, and comprise a; tension wheel 108 at the rear of the machine, a brakedisk 109 fast upon the shaftof the tensionwheel',

a friction brake shoe 110 bearing upon. .the periphery of the brake disk, apivoted lever 111 to one end of whichthe'brake shoe-is.

connected, anda spring pressed rod 112-connected to the other end =of.,the lever. Fo'r releasing the tension by a backwardjrotation of the cam shaft. when a shoe is-to be removed from the machine, the :i'isualthrowofi' arm 113 is upper end of a ell cranklever 114.

pivotally connected thealp'pcr end-of ai'rod 115 which extends downwardly tliroughga rovid'ed, mounted upon the r Tothe horizontal arm of this bell crankflleverfis hole in the end of the brake-shoe carrying nut 116 arranged to engage the brake shoe carrying lever to move the brake shoe from the friction disk. Therod is pressed upwardly by means oit'a'coiled spring 117.

, lever 111 and is provided with an adjustable The heating devices'ofthe machine,-illus- M tratcd only in part, comprise'aistcainpas sage Way 118 in the bracket supporting the tens on wheel, a vertical steam passage-way .119 in the frameof-the machine adjacent;

the loopcr mechanism, anda plate120projecting forwardly from the Ehead-of-the machine at one side'ol themain'and auxiliary takeup levers. -y'lhis-plate 120. is-secu'redto the head of f'the-machinesoas-to be capable of latcral adjustment by means of screws l2l' passing through a slotted flange-ofthe plate and screwing into .the head of the machine.

The nature and scope of the present invention having been indicated, and a machine embodying the several features of the invention in their preferred form having been specifically described, what is claimed is 1. A chain stitch shoe sewing machine, having, in combination, a hook needle, a looper, Work feeding means, means for positively actuating the needle through the whole of its retracting stroke to tighten the preceding loop, and means for yieldingly supporting the needle against the pull exerted upon the needle by the thread during the feed. I

2. A chain stitch shoe sewing machine, having, in combination, a hook needle, :1. looper, work feeding means, mechanism for positively retracting the needle to tighten the preceding loop and means for releasing the needle from said retracting mechanism and for supporting it under light spring pressure during the feed.

3. A chain stitch shoe sewing machine, having, incombination, a hook needle, a looper, means for feeding the work, means for actuating the needle to exert a strain on the thread sufficient to tighten the preceding loop, and means for yieldingly supporting theneedle during the feed arranged to exert a less strain onthe thread.

4. A chain stitch shoe sewing machine, having, in combination, a curved hook needle arranged to pierce the shoe from the outside and emerge from the channel, a

looper, and a curved awl movable about an axis eccentric to the needle in a path of 'smaller' radius than that of the needle and substantially tangent to the path of the needle at the point where the needle pierces the work.

5. A chain stitch shoe sewing machine, having, in combination, a curved hook needle arranged to pierce the shoe from the outside and emerge from the channel, a looper, and a curved awl movable about an axis at the rear and below the axis of the needle, said awl moving in a curved path of smaller radius than that of the needle and substantially tangent to the path of the needle at the point where the needle pierces the work.

(3. A chain stitch shoe sewing machine, having, in combination. a curved hook needle, a looper, a thread arm, and mechanism for actuating the looper comprisim a slide mounted to reciprocate in a right line in a plane parallel to that of the needle and in a direction inclined to the planein which the scam is sewed, a looper carrying arm pivotally mounted upon the forward end, of the slide to oscillate in a plane at right angles to the plane of the needle, and means for reciprocating the slide to move the free end of the looper. across the path of the needle substantially at right angles to said path and means for oscillatingthe arm tomove the free end of the looper across the plane of the needle.

7. A chain stitch shoe sewing machine, having, in combination, a curved hook needle, a looper, a thread arm, and mechanism for actuating the looper comprising a slide mounted to reciprocate above the needle in a right line in a plane parallel to the plane of the needle, a looper carrying arm pivotally mounted upon the forward end of the slide to oscillate in a plane at right angles to the plane of the needle, a rock shaft, connections between the rock shaft and the arm for oscillating the arm to move the free end of the arm across the plane of the needle, means foractuating the rock shaft, and means for actuating the slide to move the free end of the arm across the path of the needle.

8. A chain stitch shoe sewing machine, having, 'in combination, a curved hook needle, a looper, a thread arm, and mechanism for actuating the looper comprising a slide mounted to reciprocate above the needle in a plane parallel to the plane of the needle, an arm pivotally mounted upon the forward end of the slide to oscillate in a plane at right angles to the plane of the needle and having its ends projecting above and below the slide, means for securing the looper to the lower end of the arm, a, rock shaft arranged parallel with the slide, an arm at the forward end of the rock shaft, connections between the arm on the rock shaft and the upper end of the looper carrying arm for oscillating the looper carrying arm, means for oscillating the rock shaft, and means for actuating the slide.

9. A shoe sewing machine, having, in combination, stitch forming devices including a curved hook needle, a. feed slide, a curved awl, an awl carrier mounted to oscillate on the feed slide, a lever mounted on the feed slide to oscillate and move limgitudinally, a link connecting the free end of the lever and the and carrier, a can'i-actuatcd bell crank lever, and a connection between the free end of the bell crank lever and said sliding and oscillating lever permitting movement of the sliding and oscillating lever in the direction of feed.

it). A chain stitch shoe sewing machine, having, in combination, a curved hook needle, a looper, and a curved awl movable about an axis eccentric to the needle in a path of sn'iallcr radius than that of the needle.

11. A chain stitch shoe sewing machine, having, in combination, a curved hook needle, a loo-per, a curved awl movable about an axis eccentric. to the needle in a path of smaller radius than that of the needle and means fore-djusting the axis of the awl transversely.

12. A'chain stitch shoe sewing machine,

having, in combination,. a curved hook needle, a curved awl mounted to move about an axis fixed with relationto the needle during the operationof the machine, and means for adjusting the axis of the awl transversely.

13. An inseam shoe sewing machine, having, in combination, stitch forming devices including a, curved hook needle, a feed slide,

. a channel guide lever carrying the channel copies of this patent my be obtained for guide pivotally mounted upon the feed slide, and mechanism for oscillating the channel guide lever comprising a segment meshing in presence of two Witnesses.

. ANDREW EPPLER. Witnesses:

FREQ O. FISH, ANNIE G. RICHARDSON.

five cent! each, by oddrening the Commissioner of Patents, fwlchlngton, D. O." 

